Gracen Halton just became an overnight NFL combine star with one historic leap

“Amazin’” Gracen Halton — as Oklahoma play-by-play announcer Toby Rowland sometimes calls him — was the talk of the NFL Combine on Thursday after recording a historic vertical jump and finishing in the top five among defensive tackles in multiple testing metrics.

Needless to say, Halton’s 36.5-inch vertical was best among defensive tackles, topping runner-up Albert Regis of Texas A&M by a full two and a half inches. Halton ranked No. 21 overall among all participants Thursday, which included every defensive lineman and linebacker.

More NFL Combine results: Gracen Halton

In addition to the vertical jump that has him in rare air, Halton clocked a 4.82-second 40-yard dash (third among DTs) and recorded a 9-foot-6 broad jump (tied for second), a 4.79 20-yard shuttle (fourth) and a 1.70 10-yard split (fifth) at the NFL Combine.

If you’ve watched any Oklahoma football over the past four seasons, you know how Halton’s freakish abilities translate to the field. One of the key disruptors for a Sooners defense that ranked sixth in the country in total defense and seventh in scoring defense, Halton finished fourth on the team with 3.5 sacks and seventh with seven tackles for loss. All told, he forced losses totaling 67 yards.

Halton’s true coming-out party came during the 2024 season, when he was second on the team with five sacks (59 yards) and fourth with six tackles for loss (47 yards).

With his performance in Indianapolis on Thursday, expect Halton to shoot up draft boards and become a legitimate possibility to be selected in the first two days. If he somehow slides to Day 3 of the draft, someone is going to land one of the steals of the class.

In an NFL season where the Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl behind elite defensive play and impressive depth along the defensive line, expect teams to try to replicate that formula. That bodes well for Halton.